TLOS: Be Mindful
by Writer's Convexity
Summary: Two months after the fall of Malefor, and for Spyro and Cynder, things are going quite well. Then a new dragon comes to the city and everything unravels as an old enemy with powerful past comes to haunt their friends and allies. New allies and old enemies come to light as a dangerous war begins.
1. Prologue

Prologue

"Two months have passed since our Master's defeat, and our foes are still weak. I wonder if they will ever recover," questions the first of two companions.

"Not if our plan comes to fruition. The Master gave us strict orders to wait until he returned. I sense that time is fast approaching, so, so fast," said the second in her light whispery voice. Her companion noticed the cold malicious lace in her voice and grinned at the thought. He looked outside toward the setting sun in the direction of Warfang. Their time was coming.

* * *

The guard hadn't noticed the distant dot on the horizon speeding toward the city. It wasn't long though until he did.

"Black dragon! There's a black coming from the north!" the small mole yelled to the runners down at the base of wall. "Run, tell the guardians!" They promptly left, running to the learning center, where the guardians were currently holding classes.

* * *

Spyro closed his eyes as sleep threaten to take him. Two months ago he was fighting a war against an enemy that threatened to eradicate his entire race, but now he was stuck in Cyril's history class attempting to stay awake. He sighed and looked around the room at his fellow classmates. Being in the upper right hand corner allowed him to see most of his friends. Flame, who to the left and back, was out cold. Next to him (directly behind Spyro) was Ember. A month and a half ago Cynder and Spyro had met their classmates for the first time. Two days later Ember official went from 'acquaintance' to '_stalker_'. It was to the point that for two weeks he was hard pressed to lose her and get some alone time that he had desperately needed with Cynder. Then school started. And while he didn't get any alone time with Cynder, it got Ember of his tail.

"It was after this battle that the Moles decided tha-," Cyril never got to finish his sentence. That moment one of the runners came crashing through the door.

"Master Cyril! A black dragon has been spotted moving south toward the city! The other guardians are to meet in the center clearing to meet them," the cheetah said panting. In the commotion Spyro stirred and broke through his day dreams. Black dragon? He thought all the dragons were in Warfang. Who is he? Where did he come from? All these questions ran through his head plus more and he could tell everyone else was thinking the same. Making eyes with Cynder, he knew this was on her mind too.

"I guess that includes me than. Class dismissed," Cyril waved his massive paw and everyone rushed pass him to get out of the cramped classroom. In the rush of people, Spyro lost sight of Cynder.

"Wait, can I come? Shouldn't I meet him too?" Spyro asked Cyril, but unfortunately, he didn't hear.

The commotion somehow escaped Flame's noticed, for he was still fast asleep. Spyro kicked him awake.

"Whaaaat? Letme shleep," Flame slurred his words as he woke.

"Come on, class is over," the magic words. In a flash Flame was up on his feet as awake as could be. He looked at the clock and noticed how early it was.

"Whad I miss? Did Master Snore get bored?" Flame asked.

"I'll never get bored of giving you detention, young Flame. 5 o'clock with Master Gladiator. Now get out. I have to go," as they left the classroom, Flame asked under his breath

"Why didn't you tell me he was standing there?"

* * *

15 minutes later after losing Ember, meeting up with Cynder, and having Flame distract Ember to lose her again, the two talked about what had happened in class.

"Do you think that he's a shadow dragon? I thought the shadow dragons were as rare as light dragons. And there are only 8 of those in recorded history. I hope that this guy is nicer than Shurruke," Spyro said. Among the dragons that came out of hiding after Malefor's defeat, were quite a few dragons their age. Shurruke was one of them. A large shadow dragon, he was pompous, arrogant, disrespectful, and a bully with an eye for Cynder. Spyro didn't like him at all because of this and constantly got into fights with him, and has never lost.

"How do you know they're a guy? What if they're a girl, hhmm? I hope it's a girl so that I have someone to spar with. Shurruke is an absolute creep, the less I have to make contact with him the better," she hated him just as much as Spyro did, though she rarely got into fights with him outside of Master Gladiator's class. The girls in the class were electric dragoness named Therana and Sana, a cold ice dragoness named Maryli, Ember, and another fire dragoness named Cider. While Spyro was able to make friends in most of the guys, the girls had split into two groups, Cynder, Sana, and Therana made up Cynder's group and Maryli, Ember and Cider made up Maryli's group. None of them had the rarer elements; shadow, poison, fear, wind, sound or light. Shurruke was the only one that had enough raw power to put up a fight against them, and fighting class was getting boring.

"I bet you a gem that it's a guy," Spyro teased.

"You're on," Cynder retorted, as they ran to the center clearing.

* * *

The area had been cleared do to the seriousness of the situation .Using her shadow breath to render them invisible, Cynder and Spyro moved to the edge of the clearing silently. The newcomer had already landed, and was already talking to the guardians. Immediately Spyro knew that **he** was a guy, due to the fact that he was broader than a female although longer from the shoulders to the base of his tail. Spyro could tell that the black dragon was older than him, due to the fact that he was probable a foot taller than him. Like the runner had said, he was indeed a black dragon, but unlike most dragons the scales faded from the black of his back to the deep emerald green of his belly. He had only two, foot and a half long horns on his head, shining white and as straight as a cheetah's sword. What interested Spyro most were the faded green crystal clusters on his on the shoulders of his front legs and, instead of a tail blade, a small, sharp crystal cluster.

"- are coming to Warfang. They thought that it would be best to send someone ahead to tell you to expect their arrival," the black dragon stated.

"Why all of a sudden have you decided to come here?" Terrador inquired, obviously irritated with the information, or maybe it was the fact he had been called here to meet one that wasn't even an adult.

"They believe that since the war is finally over it would be safe to return. You must realize that we have been fighting-," he stopped midsentence. Spyro knew something was wrong as the dragon lifted his head just a tad. With in the span of three seconds he turned around to face Spyro and Cynder as their invisibility faded with a gasp from Cynder and an unbearable pain shot through him, locking him in place. Somewhere deep in his mind he heard a deep and hollow voice. It said one thing before he blacked out.

'_I see you.'_

* * *

**Hello, this is my first story everybody, any and all pieces of advice would be OOOMAZING. It actually took longer that expected to finish. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed and please review. Hopefully I'll have the next chapter up soon.**

**-Writer's Convexity**


	2. Chapter I: Zarss

**Sorry for the long upload time. I went on vacation but nowI'm back. Expect longer chapter's and hopefully quicker uploads.**

* * *

Chapter One:

Zarss

Spyro lay on the floor, dazed. _What had just happened?_ All he remembered was pain, terrible pain. As if someone had hit him in the face with a boulder than poured liquid steel into his veins and shoved icicles into his bones.

"Spyro? What are you doing here?" Terrador's deep voice broke through his thought process. Instantly flashes of his memories came back. He was here to find out about the new dragon, so in other words he was spying. Spyro thought for half a second before a good lie came to mind. Just as he opened his mouth to speak he was cut off.

"Come now good guardians don't tell me that you are _that_ daft to think he could be doing anything other than spying. He obviously knew that this meeting was going to be held here seeing that he was, most likely, in one of your classes when you were told. Also you should notice that the black one next to him was using her shadow breath to render them invisible to the eye. All of this is compounded by the fact that his answer was slightly hesitant and his mood changed from the one of dazed confusion to one absolute confidence the moment he started to answer," the black dragon riddled all of this off within two seconds. He hadn't even turned his head to Spyro or the guardians that had rushed to his side.

"Who the hell _are_ you?" Spyro asked, slightly angry due to the fact he had he had obviously been caught. For the first time the dragon turned to face Spyro, and one thing struck him immediately. His eyes, the onyx black eyes, Spyro could see the confidence in them, but not only that, the anger, hate, pride and **power**. The second thing he noticed was the thin necklace hanging from his shoulder. While the chain was nothing to look at, just a simple chain, on it was a green crystal, not one that he had used to replenish his energy to use his breaths, but a small faded green crystal.

"My name is Zarss. I come to you from the Dual Tribe of the north," Zarss stated, his annoyance showing. "Now might I ask, who-"

"The Dual Tribe? What's tha-" Spyro didn't get to finish his interruption before Cyril butted in. His anger had quickly faded to curiosity after hearing that.

"You can know after we have finished our meeting with young Zarss, so now leave-" Neither did Cyril.

"Now why should they have to leave Cyril? They have a right to know, and getting to know Zarss would be an excellent exceptional superb outstanding experience," Volteer cut in, winking at Spyro.

1

It was a terrible time for Cynder to get up though. Her head was spinning and she couldn't get to stop. The she heard her name being called, but from inside her head, and it was another voice not her own.

'_Cynder'_

Deep and hollow, it echoed with a power as old as the world. But all she heard was a deep longing.

"Cynder. Cynder," then she heard Spyro. She felt herself lying on the ground, cold and hard. In that instant she remembered what she was doing and let out a puff of shadow as she opened her eyes. In front of her were the guardians, Terrador standing off to the right of Spyro, and with Cyril and Volteer flanking him. Spyro was standing right next to her. It was right then that she noticed that her tail was wrapped around his hind leg and she was shivering. Quickly standing, she whipped her tail away from Spyro and shook her head, trying to keep the blush off her face. Then she noticed him. The black dragon was staring ever so intently. As his eyes looked over her, she felt almost… exposed. That's when she realized that everyone was watching him, obviously waiting for his next move. His third introduction shocked them.

"Hello my dear dragoness, Zarss is in your services," he said with a bow. Spyro started to shake with anger. Cyril just rolled his eyes and shook his head. Volteer looked a little amused, while Terrador looked for something to say. She kicked herself just standing there and replied,

"Zarss? What an unusual name. Mine is Cynder," she spoke, trying to muster an air of command, of confidence.

"The beautiful name really matches-" Zarss never got to finish. The growl that came from Spyro was rather loud, for all to hear. Zarss took a step back and was about to say something in response when Terrador started.

"Alright, now that introductions have been made, it is time for Spyro and Cynder to leave." Terrador said sternly, killing all arguments. Except for one,

"Why? Why do they have to leave?" Zarss's look of innocence only irritated Terrador.

"Because they are not allowed to know until we know," Terrador gestured to the guardians with his tail.

"But you do know. The Tribe of Duals will be coming to Warfang. They will be here within three days. That's all I have to say," the continued innocence unnerved Terrador just enough to make him hesitant to reply. This gave Zarss the time he needed to get what he wanted.

"Plus I need a guide. If I went to walk around by myself I'd get so lost that you wouldn't see me for days, or even weeks. So putting me with some one that knows the city would be the best idea," Terrador was looking a little dazed at this point, although the reason why was beyond any of them.

"I'll take your silence as an okay, okay?" Zarss said as he started to walk out of the area, using his wings to keep Spyro and Cynder walking out next to him. They rushed out to the nearest side alley, hoping to get out of sight. It was only after they reached the end that he curled his wings back up around his body. Spyro and Cynder just stared at him, looking bewildered.

"What?" Zarss asked his look changing from innocence to mischievous as the passed from his lips.

"How did you do that? In less than four sentences you convinced Terrador to let us go, without punishment," Spyro was thinking a thousand thoughts a second. _If he could do that, I wonder if he could get us out of Cyril's class._

"My secret, now show me around, they will probably come looking for us," he said with a wink. Spyro knew that all first hostilities were gone.

"By the way my name is Spyro, I know that you were going to ask before you were interrupted," Spyro mentioned sheepishly.

"Well nice to meet you Spyro," Zarss stated, almost emotionlessly, his eyes darting from side to side, until he zeroed in on the street to the left.

"Multiple dragonesses are coming from that direction," he said with a nod of his head. Spyro listened intently, and heard the footsteps; the quiet whispers told him there were three people. He turned to Zarss and was about to tell him they needed to leave when he realized that Zarss was gone. Nervous, Spyro started to walk backwards, taking only three steps back before Cynder followed in suit. That's when they turned the corner.

"Oh, well hello there _Spyro_," Maryli said, her tone seductive and sweet, but laced with poison. Everyone knew that the whole reason that these girls had formed their own little group was so that they could tear Cynder from Spyro and keep him for themselves, although they hadn't thought of who would get him if they succeeded. Spyro stood still and responded, hoping that his lack of emotion would dissuade them from perusing the conversation.

"Hello Maryli, Ember, Cider."

"We were just leaving," Cynder stated, obviously wanting to get away from them.

"Was I talking to you, you poor excuse of a dragon," Maryli hissed through her teeth, instantly turning hostile.

"Don't speak about yourself like that," the dragonesses turned to see Zarss standing behind them. Cynder noticed the thin tendrils of shadow covering his paws and wing tips.

"Who the hell are you?" Maryli barked, venom in her eyes, looking ready to kill.

"I'm the hell person who's going to kick your ass," in a second he disappeared, fading into darkness, his body dissipating into the shadows that surrounded them. Just as quickly he reappeared behind them, in between them and Spyro and Cynder. Before they could react he spun, hitting Maryli with his tail. This caused her to slam into Cider and sent them both rolling into a large tree, dazed. Zarss though didn't waste any time surveying his small victory. He was on Ember in a flash. Snarling and slashing, he was able to give her three long lacerations on her left flank and then when she was stunned charge into her, slamming head first into left shoulder and sending her flying, into the other two, who had just gotten back up. Realizing that they had just gotten their asses handed to them, they picked up the unconscious Ember and scurried away.

"Well that was fun, I wanna do that again," Zarss laughed, a gleam in his eyes. Spyro had taken one thing from all of that.

"So you're a shadow dragon?" Spyro asked, believing it was a rhetorical question that would not get an answer.

"No, well technically yes but that is only my second element," he stated. Almost as if they asked a dumb question…

"That's right! You said you're from the Dual Tribe! That means that you have two elements," Cynder stated excitedly. Spyro stared in disbelief, having grown to believe that only a purple dragon could control multiple elements.

"That's right," Zarss proclaimed as he started to walk again, this time to the academy's dorm spire.

"Well if you have two elements what's your second?" Spyro dejected, not believing what he was hearing. He and Cynder ran to catch up.

"_Draco Mentis,_ you know Spyro that you're still special," Zarss said with a laugh.

"What? What are you talking about?" Spyro asked, trying to cover up his irritation with confusion.

"Well you didn't seem to believe either me nor Cynder when we said that I was a Dual, and the quickness of your answer compiled with the defensiveness of your voice made it plain and simple that you either don't believe us or you don't like it," Zarss unraveled Spyro's thoughts with ease. And, thanking his genialness, he was able to get them off the subject of his primary power.

"While we can control two powers…" Zarss continued to explain the strengths and weaknesses of a Dual. By the time they reached the dorm rooms, it was dark, and they had memorized the math equation that explain a Dual's in relation to a regular dragon with the same primary power, x/3+2y, x being the strength of a regular dragon, y being age and one equals one medium sized blue gem. After so many examples, Zarss was surprised with the fact that they weren't saying it under their breath. As they walked through the corridors they reached an arch way that said **Females Only**.

"Well, this is where I break off. See you boys later," Cynder said with a grin. As she went around the corner, all the two dragons could do was stare at her as she left. When she was out of sight the two dragons continued on their way.

"So, what's with the crystal? I've never seen one like that," Spyro questioned.

"This?" Zarss put his hand on it, knowing he had asked a stupid question. The question had been asked only once before, and it was a topic that was a little too close to one that he preferred, "I've had it since I was a hatchling. It is called _Furor Viridi_ or the Green Fury, made from the first gems and crafted by a race long gone and was given to my mother's great grandfather. Elder Zantheros said my mother gave it to him for safe keeping when my parents gave my egg to Master Mesilec after it was laid."

"So, you never met your parents," Spyro asked sympathetically, knowing how it feels to not know one parent's. Immediately Zarss's expression went from reminiscent to angry at hearing that, and Spyro thought he said something wrong.

"That conversation is for another time," Zarss stated, a stone cold expression on his face. After that they walked the rest of the way in silence. When they got to the **Males Only **sector Zarss said his good bye to Spyro, but he didn't know why.

"Wait, you won't be staying in the dorms?" Spyro inquired, believing that to be weird.

"Yes, I'm to report to the Ambassador center located north of the Citadel. I'll be staying there until living quarter's have been arranged for my tribe after they get here," Zarss said coolly.

"Okay, meet me and Cynder at the entrance to the kitchen tomorrow at 10:30," Spyro set the meeting place and ran down the hall, not waiting for Zarss's response.

1

The next day Zarss woke up early and headed to the meeting place two hours early, alone. When he got there he was confronted by a large dark dragon, though somewhat smaller then Zarss. Although he was dark, Zarss could tell that his scales were, in fact, a gray color not black. His belly was a lighter gray, but still dark. His eyes shone with a matching light gray, and behind that Zarss could see a perceptiveness that could have sent shivers up his spine. Yet it didn't.

"So you're the new guy," his voice was like a whisper, cold and calculating.

"I guess that is what you would call me, yes. But please, from now on, call me Zarss," Zarss tried to keep thing on the lighter side, but it seems that the other dragon didn't hear that, or care.

"Why did you attack Maryli? I surly hope that for your sake she provoked you," the dragon asked.

"She did. Now before we continue this conversation; what is your name?" he asked, Zarss's irritation levels rising.

"The name is Shurruke," he said as he turned and left into eating area. Just then did he realize that Spyro and Cynder were walking up to him, Spyro still half asleep. Zarss ignored his yawn and said simply,

"Let's get some food," breakfast consisted of potatoes, deer, some citric fruit and water. When asked if they had anything other than water to drink the moles said that they served _Vocatus_, but not with breakfast.

"If you want, we could make an exception for you due to the fact that you're new," the mole said.

"I've never drank an alcoholic beverage and I will not start here," he said as he shooed the mole away. They got up and left, Spyro and Cynder talking and laughing as they made their way to the guardians. When they got there they were dismiss with a wave of Cyril's paw.

"Due to the fact that there is nothing more for young Zarss to tell us, he will be accompanying you to your classes. Please try to not let us regret our decision," Terrador said, just as dismissive as Cyril.

"Take him to Master Gladiator's class today and then Master Selylana's class tomorrow, just as if it was a regular day," Cyril instructed, glad that he had taught his class for the week.

"Do the Masters know of Zarss, I don't think that it is a good idea to walk in with someone new without them being told of him," Spyro advised, trying to sound sophisticated. Volteer though, was one step ahead of him.

"I informed the Masters yesterday, believing they would want to know," Volteer said, trying to keep adjectives out of his speech. Spyro realized that he been beaten, so he looked to Zarss to and Cynder for help. Zarss just looked excited and all Cynder could do was shrug. Sighing, he said his fare well and they all left.

"Is it just me or were you trying to get rid me in there," Zarss questioned not knowing what to think.

"No, I'm sorry if it came off that way but that was not what I was trying to do." In truth that was what he was trying do, but the reason was not to get him away. After the return of the dragon's that had gone into hiding, Spyro had lost much of his influence over the decisions made by the guardians. The return of the Elemental Masters just made it worst. However, Spyro continued to regain the voice he had earned in the war against Malefor. Though he doubted that Zarss would understand this so he looked for a good lie, and saved by Cynder.

"He was trying to save you from our classmates. They're vicious and they'll eat you alive," Cynder said jokingly, getting them off the subject.

"Hhhmm, speaking of your classmates, who is Shurruke?" Zarss asked, hoping to find out more about the dragon he encountered earlier.

"That punk? He's the only pure shadow dragon in the city. Because of that he thinks that he's better than everyone else," Spyro let Cynder finish for him.

"Basically he's a snot nose-pompous-arrogant-ignorant-piece of crap," she stated, obviously hating on Shurruke. Zarss had gotten another idea though. He looked at Spyro and said simply,

"So you're jealous," Spyro reeled back in shock, not believing what he just heard. Cynder to thought that, but knew better to not say it out loud. Then all she wanted to find out is how Zarss was able to figure it out with so little information.

"WHAT! I HAVE NO REASON TO BE JEALOUS OF THAT-" Spyro yelled, trying not to kill the black dragon in front of him.

"But you are. Your tone says it. Your quick retort and failure to keep your voice level proves it. Not only that but how Cynder speaks of him I can assume that he is the equivalent to the three females we met yesterday, but to Cynder," Zarss said. His message though was silent. He knew the feelings Spyro had for her and vice versa. They blushed and looked off to the sides, not making eye contact until Zarss asked another question.

"What does Master Gladiator teach? And what of Master Selylana?" Zarss pestered, trying to get rid of the awkward silence that he had created.

"Well Master Gladiator teaches combat. He usually starts with just training dummies and then gets us into practice fights that last ten minutes each and at the end he tells of what the combatants need to work on. At the very end of class he allows one person to challenge someone else, called the Match. These matches decide the ranking you have in the class, one through twenty," just as Zarss opened his mouth to say something, Cynder started talking about Master Selylana.

"Master Selylana is a wind dragoness who teaches flying. She basically lets us have free time as long as we stay in the air. If you land for more than two seconds than you have to complete an obstacle course called the never ending Flip. It's really just a bunch of hoops but you have to do it all upside down," Cynder said.

"Oookaay, now I must ask, do you only have twenty classmates?" Spyro looked surprised at the question. Cynder seemed to understand his confusion a little more.

"In all there are twenty-six, not including you and the six are girls that are not included in the regular ranking. It's split up by gender until the last month, which we are all tested against each other, finding out our true ranking in the class," she explained. And just in time, because it was that second that they walked out in to the academy courtyard, where the class took place. Even though they were seventeen minutes early, some of the other students had arrived ad were already practicing. No one seemed to notice the new dragon. No one except for Ember. Her yelp of surprise sent giggles through Cynder.

"WHY IS **HE** HERE!" she cried out, terrified of the dragon before her. Her screeching only made it harder for Cynder to control her laughing. His response only made 10x harder.

"I'm sorry, have we met before?" Zarss said, scratching his head with his left wing. His response left her mumbling like an idiot, causing Cynder to burst out laughing just as Flame walked into the courtyard.

"What's going on?" he inquired, but never got an answer.

"_Quiet!_ Now it seems that we have a newcomer in our mist. _**Cynder**_ I **said** _shut_ _up_. Now, I believe introductions are in order," Zarss looked at the older dragon, going through a rundown of everything he had seen of him, his cold exterior, his sharp scolding. He then made up a quick seven word sentence that would leave his dumbfounded, and immediately through it out the widow, going for the simple common opening,

"My name is Zarss," Zarss never let his emotionless facade drop.

"Well then _Zarss_ I believe a test of your abilities is in order. Spyro, you will be his opponent, get in positions," he jumped back out of the fighting circle as everyone scurried out of their way. In the background Flame petitioned for him to wait,

"Shouldn't we wait-"

"Let the match begin!"

* * *

**Thank you for reading, please review**

**-Writer's Convexity**


	3. Chapter II: Revelation

Chapter 2:

Revelations

As soon as Master Gladiator said this Spyro's vision flickered, almost as if he was blinking. Shaking his head, he stared at Zarss, or where Zarss was a second ago. Spyro looked around for a second, only to be hit in the back by something big. He rolled with the blow, trying not to stop moving. He stared at Zarss hoping to figure out his opponent, just as Zarss did the same. They circled each other, staring at each other, thinking. Zarss stopped suddenly, turning to Spyro as if he was going to charge. With this motion Spyro tensed, getting himself ready for the attack, not expecting how he did it. Zarss grinned, and unleashed a powerful blast of… _convexity_!? Alarmed and surprised at his show of power, Spyro almost didn't dodge in time. As the purple blast of energy passed him he looked over to Gladiator, who wore a blank expression on his face his eyes staring into space. Looking around, the only one who seemed to not hold the same look was Cynder, who was shocked senseless. Before Spyro could react, Zarss unleashed a powerful wave of fear, paralyzing him.

Fear.

Zarss wasn't done there, though just before it wore off he attacked with an incredibly powerful burst of electricity, sending Spyro tumbling across the battle circle.

Electricity.

Before he could get up, a very dense blast of wind him sent him flying into the air.

Wind.

Once there, Zarss let out a large fire ball that should have turned Spyro into a large, purple tinted pile of ashes.

Fire.

_But it didn't._ Spyro could feel the heat and the pain that followed it, but it was dulled. He fell out of the air and smashed into the ground.

'_What is this?'_ His thoughts turned violent as he felt his anger rise. His vision flickered again, just for an instant. This only served to make him angrier. He felt Zarss's attack in his back, something stabbed in his hide.

Ice.

The pain sent him reeling, his mind dulling, coming closer to being seduced by his evil thoughts. Again his vision flickered, more than an instant. He saw himself staring at Zarss where he had been at the beginning of the match. Something was different about him though. He looked tired, was panting and deep in concentration. His sight failed him though, fading to black quickly before returning him to the fight at hand. Zarss stood in front of him, a sadistic grin on his face. Before Spyro could close the distance between them, tendrils of solidified darkness wrapped around his legs, holding him in place.

Shadow.

Spyro fought out of the arms of shadow, turning them to nothing in the bright light of day. By now, he couldn't fight the fury boiling beneath the surface. He was breaking through and was ready to attack. However, his opponent had other plans. Zarss opened his maw and blinded Spyro with a solar flare.

Light.

He ran toward the source, hoping to charge through him, when he struck something harder than another dragon. A large rock wall.

Earth.

Spyro broke. He unleashed his fury, and with it, a blast of pure and absolute energy that hit the unsuspecting viewers.

* * *

"_Let the match begin!"_

They didn't move. Cynder sat there looking from Zarss to Spyro and back. When she looked at Zarss and she could tell he was deep in concentration. He was squinting and there was a slight frown on his face. He stood so still it could make a statue proud. Spyro was just as still, but something about his face sent shivers down her back. His eyes were clouded over and misty. His face relaxed to the point of being limp. They stood like this for a whole minute.

"I **said** begin!" Master Gladiator shouted. By now, most of the class had arrived and were looking at the two with either boredom or interest turning into boredom. Two minutes passed. Then another. Just as the fourth was coming to a close, Spyro started to tense. Everyone looked at him waiting for him to do something, _anything_, but nothing happened. When Zarss began to pant a minute later Gladiator scowled. _What is this?_ He didn't get his answer for a minute and a half. In that second it felt like the world was being ripped apart around them and all the powers of the ancestors were being brought down to bare against them. But in the same instant it all stopped. At the epicenter stood Spyro with a blood thirsty look that replaced the vacant one he wore just a second ago.

"What the hell was that for!?" Gladiator yelled, but his second question went without an answer just like the first. Spyro lunged for Zarss, who was looking like he was about to fall over and faint. Spyro twirled, hitting him with his tail instead of head butting him. Zarss went tumbling off to the side, and not only that, the gash that Spyro's tail blade had made was only made worst. Spyro moved in for the kill as Zarss tried to get up.

"Wait… I surrender! I surrender!" Zarss exclaimed right before Spyro lunged for his throat, or at least tried to. Before he struck, Zarss ducked, letting himself fall to the ground and letting Spyro sail over him. By now, the stronger dragons were getting back to their feet, and Gladiator and Cynder were running over to the injured dragons' assistance.

"Spyro, calm yourself! What the hell has gotten into you?" Gladiator shouted at his student, this time seeing it come into effect.

"Are you kidding me? Didn't you see him? The Fear, the Ice, Electricity, Shadow, Light! He basically used all eight elements and you did _nothing_!" Spyro hissed, venom lacing his voice.

"What are you talking about? You two were sitting in the same place since the match began!" Cynder said, attempting to help Zarss to his feet.

"From your point of view," Zarss stated matter-of-factly. His voice and words drew all eyes to him.

Flame had somehow managed to maneuver next to Spyro and asked,

"What do you mean?"

"Yes, please do explain."

"Spyro, Cynder, you asked me yesterday what my primary power is. I answered _Draco Mentis_, which if you need a translation means Dragon Mind."

* * *

"Is it time? Have they arrived? They must have by now," a blood red dragon asked his companion. She answered quietly and seductively, an evil shine in the corner of her eye. She felt his power, and she knew exactly what was happening because of it.

"Not yet, my love. His revelation has just started. Later today they will arrive at the city and then we will be free. The Master will be pleased." She saw the dragons through their eyes, and so she knew what was going on. Her patience was paying off. Soon shall he have his next attack, a cause of his _Maledictio Praevisione_, and then all the pieces will fall into place. The thought put a demonic smile on her face.

"Not quite yet. Hahahaha!" Her laugh was a vile sound, and his carried throughout the mountain.

1

"What? What do you mean?" Spyro wondered, still steaming.

"Everything you saw, heard, and felt was an illusion, a creation of my mind imposed upon you. That is why I was so powerful, why you were basically powerless," Zarss explained.

"So are you saying that you could have made me see… anything?" Spyro asked, his anger fading.

"Yes, from your greatest dreams to your worst nightmare. Truly, anything," Zarss answered. Just to be berated by more questions. However, the only one he heard was Cynder's.

"How do we know we can believe you?"

'_Because right now you hear me, but my mouth isn't moving._

_Because I know right now Shurruke and Maryli are trying to plot against the two of you._

_Because all you see is the fire of the hateful stares of those around you._

_Because I know that in the end you don't care about any of this. No, no,_

_All you care about is what__**he**__thinks,_

_And that there is the possibility of what you seek._

She gasped, moving away from Zarss, only to catch him as he swayed and almost fell. Before more questions could come to Zarss's ears, Master Gladiator spoke.

"That is enough questions for today. Spyro, Cynder, please escort Zarss to the infirmary to get him fixed up. Due to recent events, revelations class is dismissed until further notice." He then took to the sky immediately. Even though he said there were to be no more questions, they kept on asking him anyway.

"What are all the uses of Dragon Mind?"

"There's quite a bit, actually. Aside from reading and controlling another's, I can lift small objects and move them with my thoughts. Also I can control your motions and actions. I know when people are near me when they are not supposed to be. And the list goes on and on."

"How does your power help you in a fight?" Shurruke asked.

"Well, instead of controlling your mind, which takes a large amount of concentration and keeps me stationary, I can affect an opponent's. Make their response times lower, dull their senses, and discourage them to the point where they either give up or I could just beat them into submission."

"Yesterday you turned into shadows. Is that one of your abilities?" Maryli asked. She was hoping to get him to admit to hurting Ember, but he took it in stride.

"I don't know how you know about that but yes, though for different reasons. That is my one and only shadow ability," said Zarss, grinning a mischievous grin, obviously thinking of something. Instantly, he dissipated, turning into shadow and melting into the darkness around them. Only in a micro-second to return to his spot next to Cynder, this time on the other side of her, away from Spyro and his new classmates. He was still leaning heavily on her, and the fury in Spyro's eyes sent shivers down his back.

"Wow, that's impressive-wait. How can you use two elements? If Dragon Mind is your element then how can you control shadow? You're not a purple dragon, so that must mean Dragon Mind is not a dragon specific ability," Shurruke guessed. Unfortunately, he guessed wrong.

"Not exactly. You see, I'm a special case. The reason why I came here was to inform the guardians that my kin would be arriving. My kin are the dragons of the Dual Tribe. The reason that we are called this is because we can wield two of the basic elements, and through them, the ability to gain access to a third, complex element," Zarss responded. This, in turn, unleashed another wave of questions. Thankfully, before any of them could get to Zarss's ears Cynder spotted the infirmary and quickened her pace, forcing Zarss to and leaving everyone else behind. The others ran to catch up, but by the time they did they had reached their destination. The moles of the infirmary had kept the red crystals hidden, only to be used in an emergency. This obviously didn't count.

"Bajesus, what happened? That looks terrible. We'll have it cleaned up and bandaged, but it won't heal for at least three days, and even then it'll be tender." The mole that met them in the front started to fuss over Zarss like mother hen, much to Zarss's discomfort. Forcing him to lie down on a raised cushion, the mole worked on cleaning the cut, using rubbing alcohol to disinfect it, Zarss became increasingly aware that his… entourage was still there. He was facing the opposite direction, so he couldn't see them. He planted this thought in his caretaker's mind prompting him to shoo them away.

"Why are you still here? At most there should only be one of you here. But instead there's like twenty! Shoo all of you," he kicked them all out and away.

'_Thank you._'

* * *

Spyro and Cynder walked around for an hour, just talking about the day's events. Neither of them fully understood what exactly had happened, but they were able to piece it together. However, that didn't last long. Flame soon caught up with them, and the conversation turned to other topics. It was not long though before they started to continue their discussion about the day.

"I wonder what the guardians will think. I wonder if they knew," Flame was persistent with this line of thought.

"Again Flame, I highly doubt it. The thought that they wouldn't tell the Masters is insane. They would all be furious. You remember what happened when they found out that they were keeping me and Cynder a secret, right?" It was two weeks after the defeat of Malefor that Spyro was discovered. The guardians had kept him a secret by hiding him and Cynder in _Antrum Prae Civitatem_. The old watch tower overlooking the city was refitted for just the two of them, and in those two weeks they had grown even closer. It was during an unexpected visit to the city that Master Farlyn and Master Selylana ran into them and discovered the legendary purple dragon and his companion. Spyro remembered eavesdropping on the conversation…

"_How dare you hide this from us! You might be the guardians, but we have earned enough respect to know about this!" Gladiator hissed._

"_We did it for a reason. We thought that for all the things they've been through they should be able to relax and not to be badgered by everything normal dragons have to go through. Just leave them be," Cyril retorted, genuinely believing what he was saying. However, the Masters wouldn't hear it._

"_Pah, you were probably just going to use the poor boy rather than actually care for him," Master Farlyn was one of the more harsh dragons but, funnily enough, he was kind in class._

"_How would you know? You probably just want to make him your puppet!" Terrador shouted, infuriated with what he was hearing._

"_How dare you-"Master Selylana looked astounded._

"_Everyone, please, why do we have to come to this? I understand your frustration, but you must see that we truly wanted what was best for Spyro. We just exited a war; do you really want to start another internal conflict? I know that Ignitus would not have wanted it to come to this," Volteer pleaded, trying to keep the peace. They grudgingly accepted this, and they separated. The three guardians retired to the chambers where they stayed, and the Masters left to get ready for their classes for the week…_

"Well, _hello_ Spyro. I wasn't expecting to see you," Maryli smiled, pleased with Ember for finding them.

"What do you want? Can't you just leave us alone?" Cynder growled, frustrated that her conversation was being interrupted again.

"Why don't you just shut your damn mouth and go away. No one likes you, don't you understand that? **No one likes you**," Cider said, hitting where it hurts. Cynder just stared at her, trying to guess how long after she killed the dragoness she would have to kill the other before they got to a master. Deciding against murder, she huffed and let out a small amount of poison. Cider took two steps back, almost yelping when she saw this. This put a sadistic grin on Cynder's face.

"C'mon, guys let's just go." They turned around just to see Shurruke and two of his _friends_. Spyro recognized the dragons. They weren't the best of their elements, being both electricity dragons. They were good fighters and, if Spyro remembered correctly, twins.

"Hello Spyro. Do you remember the Damcus twins? They're rather angry because of last time." Last time Spyro encountered the twins outside of class it ended in a fight that landed both in the infirmary for a week. All fingers were pointed at Spyro, but the truth came out when the wind dragoness, Sana, explained that while Spyro did beat them up, it was only after they attacked him. When asked later how she had known, she had said that she had been flying overhead and saw the entire thing. Too bad she wasn't here now.

1

Zarss was walking around the city, looking for Cynder and Spyro. He was released half an hour ago and was in need of some company. He was roaming the streets when he ran into two dragonesses, each one around two years younger than him.

"Oh, well hello. May I interest you in a walk around the city?" Zarss said with a bow, the bandages being covered by his left wing.

They blushed, and the bigger of the two answered,

"We'd love to." They went on their merry way, laughing and talking. Zarss, however, was navigating them toward Cynder. He could feel her consciousness as though it was a beacon in the city. He also knew her good judgment would be the test of whether these dragonesses were friend or foe.

"I'm sorry ladies, I didn't catch your names," Zarss asked indirectly, his accent almost hypnotizing the young girls into replying instantly.

"My name is Therana. I'm a poison dragoness, one of two in the city," Therana stated proudly, holding her head high.

"Mine is Sana, and I'm a wind dragoness," Sana whispered. Zarss was thankful for his sensitive hearing for he barely heard it. That was when he finally committed their appearance to memory. Therana had a green back with a silver chest and belly. Her wings displayed an average coloration to match her scale tones. She had five long horns on her head, all pearly white, the formation, though, was quite strange. Four were in front, the two on the outside of the lineup shorter than the ones in the middle. The fifth was behind the four, and the look that it gave off was like a protective circle, or at least half of a circle. She had matching silver eyes that seemed endless. Zarss would have been able to look into them at all day if he was not preoccupied with other thoughts. Therana was an average sized dragoness for her age, though, next to Zarss, she looked adorably small. Her tail blade was diamond shaped and quite large, actually looking like a flat emerald due to its green colour. Her long legs were eye catching, though he paid them no mind. His attention went to Sana.

Unlike the confident dragoness on the other side of him, she was small and her colours were flipped with silver on her back and green for her belly and chest, and green wings with a silver skeletal structure. They were surprisingly long for her age, though she was a wind dragon. On top of her head were two thin, short horns, both bending at an angle so they were slanted backwards. They were white, though not as polished looking as Therana's. Her scales slightly refracted the light making her glow, even in the sunset. She had a small tail blade, but the look of it was sharp and deadly. It had what seemed like a swirl to it, like looking into a tornado from the top. Her body was long and thin, which truly reminded him of the dragoness on the other side of him. She had short legs, though he was sure that they were better for flying anyway. All in all, she looked like natural flyer.

"Well ladies-" he stopped, a wave of fear, anger, and terrible pain had spread from his destination.

'_Cynder!'_

* * *

The fight had begun, however one sided it was. While Cynder and Spyro had the greater strength and were more powerful, their reluctance to severely injure their opponents coupled with the fact that they were outnumbered spelled their doom. Flame's abilities helped, for he was skilled, but they were still going to be beaten. Their foes had angled them in a position to be beaten through divide and conquer. What happened next, they did not expect, though. Shadow started to bleed out of Cynder, but before any of them could register this, they were engulfed in a pulse of energy and wind, knocking them back from the three that had formed the center of the fight. When they recovered, they saw something that would terrify them to their dying days. In their place was the shape of a dragon wreathed in shadow with eyes of red. It shouted, but did not make a sound.

'_I am Zarss, wielder of Shadow and Mind!_

_Keeper of Furor Viridi and last of my house!_

_Fear my power, for you shall feel my wrath!'_

Before anyone could react, tentacles of darkness erupted from the beast and attacked the dragons, slamming into them and causing them to fall back.

* * *

Inside of the monstrosity was like a dream. It was white, and very comfortable. The dragons on the inside knew just about as much as the ones on the outside. But at least they could think.

"Well, I saved you two again, and you for a first. I was hoping the rest of today would be restful, but you two seem quite intent with getting into trouble," they turned around to see Zarss in between the split group.

"Zarss!? How did you get here? Wait, where are we?" Spyro and Cynder said in unison.

"First, I got here using my shadow ability when I felt a disturbance in Cynder's thoughts. How I was able to do that from that distance, I don't know. Second, we are in the belly of the beast as I like to say. Basically we are in a large shadow dragon that I'm controlling through my thoughts. It is rather difficult and I do not know how long I can hold it. Also it's draining energy from the _Furor Viridi_, ya know, the crystal on my neck, and that is insanely valuable. So when I say, we will be returning to the regular world." Zarss's irritable look caused all questions to be dropped for the moment. Then the shadow faded around them, to reveal their six foes. While they were shocked, they were still ready for a fight. Maryli said three words and the fight began anew.

"Zarss is mine!"

* * *

Therana and Sana were wandering around, looking for Zarss who had used his shadow ability to just vanish. Then they heard the cries and ran toward them, hoping no one was hurt. The cries stopped suddenly, but they kept moving toward where they thought they had originated. They took to the sky, and quickly saw them from the air.

"Look! Over there!" Therana shouted, and they both shot down like bullets. The fight they saw was not going well, Cynder and Flame weren't doing well against Maryli, Cider, and Ember. That was the worst though, for Spyro and Zarss were fairing much better. Shurruke and the Damcus twins were wary when trying to face their new opponent and Spyro's reputation didn't help their cause. Surprisingly, the street was empty, so there was a large amount of space and the aggressors took full advantage of that. Cynder and Flame were separated, and that gave Maryli an opening straight at Zarss's back, but before she had a chance to take advantage a large blast of poison got in her way. It was followed up by two gust of wind pushing out from the center group.

"Aahh no you don't! You worthless-" Therana caught herself and regained her composure just before landing.

"Why don't you just leave," Therana hissed, anger present. The two groups stared at each other, Maryli realizing that her advantage of numbers was taken away. They backed away slowly; almost cautious of the group of dragons they had almost beaten a few short seconds ago. As they did this Shurruke and his two friends did the same. When they were out of earshot, the winners let out a whoop of victory and started to talk among themselves.

"Aaahhh, Cynder, we knew that you must have gotten into trouble!" Therana and Cynder embraced, and Zarss was happy that he got to keep his new friends, and his skin. As everyone was whooping and cheering, Zarss perked his head, an old feeling of dread washing of over him. But just as it came, it left, replaced by a reminiscent sense of comfort. He knew that they were close, and that thought put a smile on his face, one that went unnoticed by the unsuspecting city.

* * *

**Hello guys, this note has something special. I would like to thank gr4nt th3 dr4g0n, Onyx the Dragon Writer20, and BlueEyedBabyy for being my first three followers. A bigger thanks to The Wandering King for editing this chapter for me. The Wandering King's awesome story can be found here s/7094020/1/The_Legend_of_Wither_The_Rise_of_Nobody. Thank you all :).**

**-Writer's Convexity**


	4. Chapter III: Newcomers

Chapter 3:

The Return of the Duals

The group of dragons walked through the city streets, completely content with their positions. They were talking and laughing, but when darkness crept over the horizon they made their way back to the dorms. When they got there Zarss said his goodbyes and flew to the Ambassador center for the second and last time. His thoughts, though, were elsewhere. They lingered on Cynder, for even as the distance between them grew, the feeling of her mind did not diminish. He could feel it, the basic colours of her most present emotions apparent. The why, though, was hidden from him, for he had no true attachments to her. When he got to his room he flew in through the window, not even bothering to check in. He started pacing, trying to gather his memories and thoughts, wanting to figure this out. Something lay just at the edge of his mind, and the more he reached for it the further it got.

"Aarggh! Why do things have to be so damn complicated!?" Zarss thought about this, how he was talking to himself. He did this quite often, and Master Mesilec hated it. This thought put a smile on his face, which quickly faded once he returned to the matters at hand. He placed his paw and transferred as much energy into it as he dared. It was a nightly ritual for him, and he did it automatically. This usually calmed his mind and fatigued him, but not tonight. His mind was racing, and he knew that he had to move, see her, talk to her, or just be near her. This drove him crazy, for he did not know why. And then something hit him. The vision. Why didn't I see it before! His realization hit him like a ton of bricks. For with this came the explanation why. Not to just one, but two questions. He knew why this was happening, and the only thing he could was blame the person responsible.

"Damn you Malefor."

* * *

The next morning came, and Spyro and Cynder were waiting for their new friend, and time was running out. Class was going to begin, and they didn't like the idea of being late. If he didn't get here soon they were going to be.

"Where is he?" Spyro muttered impatiently.

"Why don't we just go to him? We know where he's staying," Cynder suggested, wanting to know what was taking him so long.

"Do you actually know where the Ambassador Center is?" Spyro asked.

"Of course." They got there in ten minutes after asking for directions, much to Cynder's embarrassment. When they found Zarss's suite, they knocked and waited.

"What? Can't I get some-" Zarss cut off his sentence.

"Aaahhh, excellent, guests. Come in, come in," he motioned with his paw, and the surprised dragons complied. His suite was incredibly fancy. The hallway they walked through ended in a large open room, obviously meant for a large dragon. And by large, they meant large, huge, gargantuan, enormous. It looked as if the masters and guardians could all fit in here and still have enough room to fit all the moles of Warfang, and then some. When they walked over to what looked like the living room, they saw three large bottles of Vocatus, and some fine brands at that. They were all empty.

"I thought you didn't drink," Spyro said with wide eyes.

"I just started. Seven hours and fourteen minutes ago, to be exact," Zarss answered the unasked question, as he walked away from the cooler with another bottle in his paw.

"Would you like some? It is the best brand I'm told, some of the best in Warfang," Zarss offered, but they both refused.

"Zarss, what's wrong? What happened? You can tell us," Cynder crooned, almost convincing a half drunk Zarss to divulge his secret. Almost.

"I… no. I can't tell you. If I tell you, one of you will be shocked to the core and have no idea how to take the information, and the other will probable become a shell of a dragon, and I don't want that for you. There's not enough alcohol in Warfang and Avalar combined for what you would feel. Although there might be enough tranquilizers…," Zarss went off on that thought alone, still gulping down his drink. He didn't make any real indications, so the two dragons were left thinking. Coming back to her senses, Cynder broke the silence.

"Well, you can't go to class drunk, so put down the bottle and let me get you something to clear your head…," she said as she started to look through his cabinets for something to do just that. He answered as Spyro was getting him up.

"Class? There aren't any classes today," Zarss said, and then Spyro thought he knew he was delusional. There was always class. They would have to go to it until they were twenty, or they showed proficiency in all areas.

"Wait," Zarss said, pointing up to a speaker horn.

"Attention all students, class has been suspended for the next two days, thank you," a voice obviously belonging to Cyril announced over it.

"How… what…hhhuuu?" Spyro looked dumbfounded, looking from Zarss to the speaker and back again.

"I guessed, I guess," Zarss sat back down, unsure of himself.

"Well, do you know why?" Cynder asked.

"Of course I do. I may be drunk, well buzzed as they say, but I still…," Zarss said, putting an emphasis on the zz in buzzed and not even finishing.

"Well… why?"

"My kin will arrive today. The foolish fools want to impress them with a nice meeting and a show of titles. Foolish fools," Zarss couldn't seem to focus on any one person, and the grin on his face seemed to be unnatural. Spyro made a mental note to not let his older friend get drunk again.

"Ooo, that means that today you get to meet Elder Zantharos and Master Mesilec today! They're not going to like this…," Zarss started to mumble on.

"Come on Spyro, help me find some rope or something," Cynder started to rummage around his apartment for anything like that. When Spyro found some he gave it to her, wondering what she was planning. She tied one end around Zarss's neck and held the other in her paw. She made a leash. Zarss looked from it to Cynder and back again, though obviously thinking of something. He got up and walked toward the bedroom, dragging her with him. Realizing it was futile to try and stop him, she let go. Not ten seconds later he came back out, with a large pouch over his right shoulder and another bottle in his hand. Believing he was ready to go, Cynder grabbed the end of the leash and walked him out of the building. Spyro was on the floor laughing.

Halfway to the herbs center they ran into three people they had rather not.

"Well hello again Spyro. I see you have your man all wrapped up," Maryli smirked. Cider just looked at Cynder and Zarss, and the leash she was holding.

"Now, if you don't mind, we'll just be leaving with Spyro," She stepped forward, causing Cynder to step aside, she didn't want to (or couldn't) get in a fight, and with Zarss as a burden, it wasn't a possibility.

"Why is you be so mean? We is all friends here, maybe there, but I don't like it there. But here, we is friends here, so why don't you just have a drink. It's on me," Zarss gestured with the half empty bottle. Maryli looked at it once and knocked it out of his paw, causing it to shatter on the cobblestone block. Zarss just reached into his pouch and grabbed another one. This one though he flipped, so the cork was facing the ground. He slammed it down on Maryli's forehead, causing everyone to jump back except for Cynder, who guessed that would happen. The sickening crunch, though, caused her to wince, but she wasn't sure if it was because of the bottle breaking or Maryli's skull.

"Fine, then we is not friends, but I did offer," Zarss mumble as Cider and Ember fussed over Maryli's unconscious body. He pulled out yet another bottle and opened it as Cynder led him away from the scene. They were going to hear about that later. When they got to the herbs center they went to find someone who could help, Flame. Flame was a serious drinker and every morning he got something for the night, so he didn't wake up hung over. Thankfully he was here.

"Hello Flame, don't make a comment about the leash or I will kill you. Anyway, I need something to clear the alcohol out of his system. Do you know what would help us?" Cynder glared at him as he snickered, and he abruptly stopped. He grabbed a small bag of mint and another of coffee beans.

"Okay, what you want to do is grind the beans into a fine powder, and put the leaves into boiling water; let it sit for three minutes, and then put in the powder. It should stay a thin liquid. If it gets thick then you need more water," Flame sighed, sad that he was passing along his secret. Cynder took the small bags and hurriedly walked out the door. When they got back to Zarss's suite they started on the medicine while Zarss just roamed around the apartment. Spyro got the water boiling, and Cynder ground up the coffee. When it was done Spyro asked the all important question.

"How are we going to get him to drink this?" He wrinkled his nose at the strong smelling drink.

"He's drunk, he'll drink anything as long as we tell him its booze," Cynder put an emphasis on the word, it forming a terrible feeling in her mouth. A scowl and matching frown formed on her face as she walked to him with the drink in her paw. In the end they didn't have to say anything. She took the Vocatus bottle from him and replaced it with the cup she was holding. He shrugged and gulped it down. At first, it looked like he thought it wasn't half bad, but his expression quickly changed as he ran to the nearest trash can and hurled. Cynder used her wind breath to keep the stench away, but Spyro and her still had to move toward the other end of the room. Not long after, though, he was calling for them.

"Spyro, get over here and get rid this crap," Zarss yelled as he slumped to the floor.

"Why me? It's your barf," Spyro called back, staying thirty feet away.

"I don't know, use your fire breath," Zarss whined as he crawled away from the can and the foul stench. Spyro complied and unleashed a torrent of flames that quickly incinerated the trash can and its contents. He happily noted that the wooden beam next to it didn't catch on fire. Everything went silent except for Zarss's moans, and then Cynder broke in.

"How are you feeling? Do you want me to get you some water?" she crooned, her voice steady and even, her emerald eyes making him feel soft and vulnerable. He nodded and turned away from her, still resting on the cushion that he had gotten onto. She left, and came back with a water skin filled. He sipped it slowly, unsure of his own stomach. It was almost thirty minutes before they said anything.

"Sorry that you had to deal with that. I wasn't expecting you to come looking for me," Zarss kept looking down, to avoid their gazes.

"Can I ask why were you drinking?" Spyro was curious. While he truly didn't know the dragon that lay before him, what he did know was that Zarss didn't drink.

"Yes, you may. But don't expect an answer." Spyro waited, and when Zarss didn't say anything else Spyro did.

"Well, why were you drinking?" He rephrased himself before Zarss could come out with a smart-aleck remark about how he didn't actually ask the question.

"If I didn't tell you while I was drunk then I won't tell you now. It's for me to know and you to never find out." Zarss raised himself to a proper position, holding his head up high and straightening himself out.

"Well, to change the subject to a livelier topic, you told us that later today your tribe would be arriving. Tell us about them… or at least the people you know best," Cynder asked, curious about these new people.

"Ooo, that's something I'll talk about. Well first of all, if Elder Zantharos agrees, then we'll be doubling our class size-well… yeah just about, no, wait… increasing it by one half, yeah because there are eleven girls and three guys, actually if you don't count me than there would be two…. Anywho, the people of any real importance are Elder Zantharos and Master Mesilec. Master Mesilec is Elder Zantharos's son and is the third oldest dragon alive at around two thousand years old, but he hates being called that. Whenever someone makes a crack about how old he is he always says something like 'If you think that I'm old then Zantharos is ancient,' or 'If you want to bug someone about age go to Zantharos'," Zarss's imitation of Master Mesilec made Cynder giggle, he huffed and waited for her to stop. When she did Spyro had another question.

"Well, who is Elder Zantharos?"

"OH MY ANCESTORS, you don't know who Elder Zantharos is? He's like the most powerful, awesome, oldest, wisest dragon alive! He is the only dual to ever obtain more power than a regular dragon, and on top of that, he was the only one dragon that Malefor feared in life!" Zarss was so adamant about this that he had gotten up and was waving his wings around, obviously aggravated.

"Wait… what? How can that be?" Spyro asked in total disbelief, believing his friend to be exaggerating.

"Well, when he was a thousand years old he mastered combination, which was right around when he had his son, Master Mesilec. His two basic elements were electricity and earth, which when combined made nature. He could after much training manipulate the weather and other aspects of the world around him. It came to the point where just his mood could affect certain things. They say when Qorkary, his mate, died it was a down pour. It didn't stop raining for two weeks," Zarss explained, as if he was supercharged. Something in Spyro's mind told him that Zarss was something of a fan boy.

"Hey! I am not a fan boy! Elder Zantharos is… it's just that…," Zarss seemed lost for words. Cynder, though, caught on.

"You didn't grow up with your parents, biological parents I mean, did you?" Cynder asked, her voice soft and level. At first, Zarss thought he was going to get angry, they didn't deserve to be mentioned in any relation to him. But staring into those eyes made something change. The anger didn't come. Instead, there was a deep longing that replaced it. He sighed and answered.

"That is correct. They gave me up to fight in the war, and are despicable because of it. Those they served are worse than those they fought. They gave me to Master Mesilec as an egg, but he is more of a teacher than a father. I guess that's because he gave up his own egg when I was two. Zantharos was the father I didn't get, and I'm happy to say that." Zarss opened up to them, and Cynder cherished the information, but something was bothering Spyro.

"Why do you sound so bitter when you talk about them, your parents I mean? So they left you so they could fight against the Dark Master. A lot of parents did," Spyro pointed out.

"You wouldn't understand. What they did was terrible. They don't even deserve to be called dragons. I feel ashamed to call them my parents," Zarss's anger was starting to come, but it didn't overcome his mind like it usually did on the topic.

"What did they do, huh? What are you not telling us? Tell us now!" Spyro was so frustrated with how Zarss was acting that he was smoking, literally.

"You'll have to kill me," Zarss glared at Spyro, infuriated with his demands on a usually forbidden topic.

"You're no different than any of us! Cynder didn't know her parents, and I didn't know mine! Why do you think you're so damn special?" Spyro was on his feet, so was Zarss and Cynder was ready to jump in between them, but something held her back. The last comment changed Zarss's expression; he had a solemn confidence about him, and she could almost see something stirring in him.

"Your parents gave you up to fight against Malefor; mine gave me up to fight for him." Spyro stumbled back, as if he had been hit. Cynder gasped, not knowing that he was going to reveal his secret, and not believing it.

"What? That's impossible! No dragon ever joined him willingly!" Spyro sputtered in disbelief. Zarss laid back down on his cushion.

"That's a lie. While Corrupted Cynder is the most infamous and famous of his servants, there were thirteen others, together called the Forsaken. My mother, Xeryna, was their leader with my father, Rage, as her second. They were more powerful than a regular dragon by several times, imbued with the power of the Dark Master. It was only after the creation of Corrupted Cynder did they start to fall. When they did, my parents fled to their sanctuary and first victory, the fort-city of Kyrith Kargorro. Where they are now, I do not know," Zarss finished his tale just as a horn was blown.

"They're here," he smiled, a mischievous twinkle coming to his eyes before he jumped out the window, shattering it and prompting Spyro and Cynder to follow.

"Zarss! Wait!" He heard Cynder and Spyro calling, but didn't heed them. He was always a fast flyer, and was quickly able to out distance them and spot the city wall. He dived, and just as he was about to be flatten he spread his wings and landed, as graceful as an eagle. He was some distance from the gate, and by extension, the Duals. He could see the massive forms of Elder Zantharos and Master Mesilec. They had told him that due to their age they were also two of the largest dragons alive, but they were, when compared to the masters and Guardians, truly massive. Elder Zantharos was at least three times the size of Terrador, and Master Mesilec was at least twice the earth guardian's size. He could see Spyro and Cynder heading toward the gate, and not only that he saw the seven figures that he could tell were the masters and guardians. He was going to recount when he remembered Ignitus wasn't here. He made a mental note to ask where he was.

"I have to see this." Master Mesilec was entering first, followed closely by his ancient father. He flew close; landing in the bushes next to them.

"Well, hello… Elder Zantharos? Is that really you?" Terrador was stunned. He obviously didn't expect the old dragon, and his old friend obviously knew that.

"Yes, my old friend, it is I, and if I may say, this is real," Zantharos smiled, his face growing warm. They moved to embrace each other, and the other guardians moved to crowd the ancient dragon, but were interrupted by a strange noise that sounded like someone clearing their throat. Terrador stepped aside, and when Zantharos looked past him he noticed the three dragons that he had ignored.

One, the largest, was a black and royal blue dragon, almost the size of Mesilec, and the telltale sign of a shadow dragon. His wings had a matching colour combination, though it was more of a cerulean blue. His eyes a cold icy blue, and the look he was giving brought a thought to Zantharos, but he quickly dismissed it.

The dragon to the far right was a green and silver combination, green back with a silver chest and head. Her wings inverted the colors, though. The wing membrane was a light green and the skeleton was silver. Her light green eyes were slightly faded, though Zantharos doubted she had trouble seeing. Her look, unlike her two companions, was a respectful curiosity.

The one in the middle was obviously the leader of the group, for his look was that of confidence and commanding. How the guardians could live around such a dragon was beyond Zantharos. He looked like a regular fear dragon, being black and red. His blood red eyes were showing deep contempt for the elderly dragon, the reason he would learn soon enough.

"What is your name?" Zantharos asked the dragon, his voice radiating a condescending tone.

"My name is Master Farlyn of the-"

"Shut, shut up. I asked what was your name; I don't care about the fifty word title. That means nothing to me. You could be the first-master-of-the-third-council-on-the-elder-squad-of-the-defense-of-retarded-ducks. I don't care, want to know why? Because I asked for your name. So when I ask for your name what will you say?"

"Ma-Master…Farlyn." It seemed to Zarss that Master Farlyn was not the one to be ridiculed and embarrassed in public, or ever.

"So what is your name?"

"Master Farlyn," the way he said this caused Zarss to burst out laughing, unable to withhold the outburst any longer. The masters turned to him, but Zantharos wasn't done yet.

"Now let me introduce myself. I am Elder Zantharos of the Second Council of the Dragon Elders, Grand High Elder of the Third, leader of the Dual Tribe, Head of the House of Helangrind, seventh user of the complex element Nature, the third teacher of the Dark Master and his one single fear," at that point the masters were staring at him, absolutely dumbfounded. Master Farlyn stared to say something but was quickly cut off.

"You never asked for my name, I was simply introducing myself."

* * *

"Excellent, the fools have gone to Warfang. The Master's vault is open," a black dragoness smiled, her plan coming to fruition. Her red companion, though, was anxious to get a move on.

"We should leave for the vault now! They will suspect something if we move too slowly, won't they?"

"No, my love, they will suspect nothing, their minds are clouded with the false sense of security that has befallen them. I will go to the vault alone. You must contact the Algardrian. Tell them it is time, and then return to me in the vault. They will be caught off guard if we do this correctly." Her victory was close, oh so close, and with it, her Master's apprentice.

* * *

**Hello again, my good peoples. This chapter is so far the most revealing, and by far the most fun to write. Two thanks are in order this time, first goes to Neoshera who, while not on this site, is the original creator of Zantharos. The second goes to my excellent editor The Wandering King, who's Omazing story can be found here s/7094020/4/The_Legend_of_Wither_The_Rise_of_Nobody. Thank you and please review.**

**- Writer's Convexity**


	5. Chapter IV: Taste of Power

**Well, sorry it took so long. Highschool is a pain. especially honors classes. Well, here you go. The next one is already done, so it'll be up soon.**

* * *

Chapter IV: Taste of Power

"So Master Mesilec, Zarss says that you're Zantharos's son. What are you powers? From what Zantharos's fanboy-"

"I AM NOT A FANBOY! God dammit Spyro! I told you to not use that terrible name for me." Spyro completely ignored him.

"- told us, his are electricity and earth, to make nature after combination. But you don't really look like you possess the same elements, seeing as you have a white and black coloring," Spyro finished his question and observations, trying to impress Cynder who he could tell was impressed when Zarss did it. Not to be shown up, but not having something to best him with, Zarss made a mental note to pass him up next time. Mesilec finally answered his question after throwing a glare Zarss's way.

"My powers are over light and shadow, making me one of a kind. My own combination is also incredibly unique."

"But your powers are polar opposites, what could they possible combine to create?" Cynder blurted out, curiosity overcoming her desire to stay silent in front of the ancient dragon.

"They are polar opposites, but that doesn't mean they don't combine. They are two different forms of energy, one negative and one positive, combine they cancel each other out, leaving only the base. Pure and absolute energy. This is my trump card, for it is the most powerful direct attack that is available to the dragon race. Also the most taxing. It is the one power which even after it is unlocked it can drain one's energy to the lowest. The Power though is, I must say, the coolest," after he had heard all the ooo's and aaa's he could care for, he was bombarded with numerous questions, and then in his head he could hear Zarss laughing his ass off.

_Hahaha! You really shouldn't have told them anything! Now they'll be over you for days! Hahaha!_

_Shut up._

Funnily enough he did, but not only that, he left completely. Just, puff. He vanished, turning into shadow and moving faster than the eye could see. That was when Mesilec wished he had never taught him that.

* * *

Mesilec kept walking toward an ancient building a little away from the center of the city. He remembered the stone tower, the largest in the city. To him it was home. He grew up there, and he had imagined the return differently. He hadn't expected to be followed by a pair of noisy and chattering younglings. The biggest thing he hadn't expected that one of them would be a purple dragon. In the end, he thought that it was a net plus for the outcome. Their constant questions were repeated over and over, but what surprised him was the fact that they followed the same thought process. When he saw the building, he started to rush forward, causing Spyro and Cynder to fly to stay with him.

Just before he rammed into the building the door opened. He slowed down to a walk and entered. The lights turned on, remembering their master's presence. Inside it was exactly how he remembered, exactly how he left it. The self-cleaning mechanism kept everything clean, but something was different. He heard Spyro and Cynder start to move around the house and started to talk again.

"So… what is this place? When you saw it you ran as is you were going…. Oh," Spyro realize the answer to his question before Mesilec gave it to him. Mesilec didn't even go to answer. His only thought was that he was home.

* * *

"Hello Master, how is your day today?"

_Haha, very funny. What took you so long? I've been here for months, waiting. What kept you?_

"I'm sorry Master, but the Duals took up a camp site to close to Kyrith Kargorro for us to leave undetected. Unlike what you believed, Zantharos and Mesilec live," The red dragon stated, having fun with the idea of his master being wrong.

_Don't toy with me! I am in no mood for your ridiculous antics! Now have you and Xeryna figured out a way to release me?_

"We did find some ancient text regarding this, all it mentions is that only the King can release you. King of what though, we have no idea. She will keep looking, but we believe that you shouldn't wait. The Zeanomroe have pledged their support by providing a massive army, their Algarian. They are much more powerful than the Apes and Grublins. They will bring the full force of several thousand years of fury down around the Dragons and Cheetahs. The best way for you to control them is to give orders through me or Xeryna. She also had a very interesting idea, but I'll let her tell you when she arrives."

* * *

Mesilec didn't want to spend much time reminiscing, so he got straight down to the point with Spyro and Cynder.

"You want to learn something from me, correct?" They nodded their heads. "Impress them."

"It'll be my utmost pleasure." They spun around to see Zarss sitting in the middle of the room. At that moment the air began to stir, swirling and pushing away from Zarss. He began to growl, as if he was trying to release air and everything that came with it. Energy. The air became violent, and Zarss started to glow. It happened so fast that Spyro and Cynder didn't even have time to cover their eyes. He was engulfed in a green fire, and the air quickened. The fire grew and pulsed, whipping around violently. Not only that, Zarss looked slightly bigger, and his scales had turned iridescent. Altogether he looked flat out dangerous.

"Wha… How are you doing that?" Cynder sputtered, utterly flabbergasted. Spyro was to stupefied to say anything.

"I should have guessed you would do something like that! You should've told me. But good choice. That is _The Show_. It's a manipulation of the energy in one's body to push it out onto the outside. The properties it takes on for an appearance are dictated by the persona of its owner; Color, shape and movement patterns change from person to person. It is mainly used by close friends, or as an intimidation tactic in battle. It is like opening yourself like a book, with all to see," at this point the energy subsided, retreating back into its yielder. After it did, Zarss let out a large sigh, obviously taxed from the technique. The air settled again, and silence fell upon them.

"When do we learn how to do that?


	6. Chapter V: Failure

Chapter V: Failures

Exhausted. That was the only thing to describe how Spyro felt. The day had been long and arduous. And while sleep kept tugging on the rim of his thoughts, he had too many unanswered question to allow sleep to overtake him so quickly. His head was spinning and his thoughts on the hours that had past stayed with him. _Why, why had I not been able to do it? I'm the purple dragon for crying out loud. It should have been easy._ His weakness was all too apparent, and he couldn't wrap his head around the reason why. What frustrated him more was that Cynder had been able to do it on her second try. The black double helix was also in his mind, how much it differed from the display Zarss had put up. Although Spyro thought it of little importance, the picture of Cynder like that, enclosed in her power and strikingly dangerous looking made his heart skip. But he forced the thought from his mind, and on to his biggest question. _Why had he failed and Zarss succeeded?_ Spyro wasn't the only one with these types of wonders on his mind though…

1

Zarss couldn't get over the view of the city from his window, the massive stone buildings all alight with torches, making the town look like the swarms of fireflies he used to chase when he was younger. The sight though was no the thing that was keeping him awake. Spyro's failure was. Through all his research he was unable to figure out why the purple dragon, the strongest dragon in Warfang, was unable to control his energy as well as any of the Duals. If anything, he should have been able to do it better. And Cynder's success threw out the possibility of needing more practice. While Master Mesilec insisted that was the problem, Zarss couldn't help but think otherwise. No purple dragon had ever been taught this, and so very little is known about them that it is almost criminal to say that anything was really known at all. Most of the knowledge held by dragons about them was conjecture and assumptions. Zarss couldn't keep himself awake much longer though to allow himself the time to ponder these questions, and resolved to go to the library tomorrow. It wasn't long before sleep took hold of him.

When he woke, he felt fully energized and ready to go. He could feel that the tower was empty, and he knew exactly where Master Mesilec and Zantharos went. Well, at least the former…the latter could've gone almost anywhere. Even though he knew the reason why they left, he couldn't help but feel a little bit betrayed. After a second of thinking of all the ways he could prank them, he decided against it. That wouldn't be helpful, and, in the end, detrimental to his cause. He closed his eyes and allowed the shadows around him to pull him along, taking him only a split second to get where he was heading. Staying in the shadow of a building that he formed near, he watched Mesilec speak to Spyro, noting that Cynder was nowhere to be seen.

"Now then, Spyro, I believe that instead of continuing on _The Show,_ we should move on to something much more productive," Mesilec's deep voice could be heard throughout the courtyard.

"What do you mean by that?" Spyro, on the other hand, being soft spoken, was much more difficult to hear.

"_The Show_ is exactly that, a show. Its purpose has been long forgotten, and now it is simply an intimidation tactic. But, to back it up, you need to know a lot more than just the basics," Master Mesilec let that sink in, but to Zarss it was clear what he was planning. He was going to teach him _Combination_, something that bored Zarss. He turned his attention to _Mind_ _Roaming_,a little technique that allowed him to go somewhere and see everything through his mind's eye. When he finally found her, he chastised himself for not looking there sooner. Cynder was still asleep, and he realized that _The Show _must have drained her more than he first expected. Just as he thought about getting her some food, his stomach growled, and he decided that it was the best thing to do.

**1**

"Now then Spyro, I believe that instead of continuing on _The_ _Show,_ we should move on to something much more productive," Mesilec dismissed the idea of continuing yesterday's failure.

"What do you mean by that?" Spyro questioned, a little confused.

"_The_ _Show_ is exactly that, a show. Its purpose has been long forgotten, and now it is simply an intimidation tactic. But to back it up you need to know a lot more than the basics," Master Mesilec let that sink in, hoping that his hint wasn't falling on deaf ears.

"You're talking about _Combination _aren't you?" Spyro's disappointment vanished when Mesilec grinned. It was replaced with pure enthusiasm at the prospect.

"Yes, this is going to be much more exciting than yesterday."

**1**

Zarss kept flying toward the cafeteria, food on his mind, until he noticed something happening in the training courtyard meant for the combat class. Five young dragons were there, and it looked as if they were fighting. As curiosity took over, he turned and dove down toward the arena. Landing on a nearby building to assess the situation, it wasn't long before he regretted the decision to watch the fight. It was a three-on-two fight; the two things he hated most were now fighting each other. When the Dual Tribe arrived, so did all the young that were accompanying them. The two dragons that stood out the most were Shadow and Akira, the twins. Shadow, a male Shadow and Ice dragon, had a grudge against Zarss, due to his sister, Akira, the Shadow and Wind dragoness, having a _thing _for him. They were fighting the new group of his worst enemies, Maryli and her group; the fight was even, for now at least. Since arriving, Zarss found out that Maryli's mother had close ties to Master Farlyn, which kept her out of trouble when things like this happened. After a couple of seconds debating whether or not to help them, he decided to embarrass Shadow. He swooped down to the fight, summoning several balls of energy and firing them at the unsuspecting combatants.

"What the-! Damn you, Zarss!" Maryli figured out who her attacker was a little too late. The energy balls struck the ground around her little entourage, causing big explosions. The three of them were knocked around like pinballs, and when they finally got up, the turned tailed and ran.

"What the hell was that Zarss!? Akira and I were doing just fine before you came in!" Shadow growled, obviously pissed.

"Ha! You two were going to have you're asses handed to you on a silver platter. Those three are vicious, not to mention the leader's mom is in good with one of the masters. You would have lost big time."

"Yeah right, you were just trying to make of fool of us!"

"No, just you. Akira isn't on my bad side," Zarss winked to her, causing her to smile and roll her eyes.

"Raagh! I'm going to-"

"What? C'mon, come at me, bro!" Shadow took the invitation and fired a crystal shard at him, and Zarss, expecting this, laugh and dissipated, moving faster than the eye could follow to the cafeteria.

"Told you so, Shadow."

"Shut up."

1

Spyro couldn't believe what he was doing. It had been thirty minutes since the lesson started, and he had already begun to combine his second set of elements. It took him no less than ten minutes to complete his first: Fire and Ice to make Water. Even though Mesilec suggested for him to practice more with Water and get the hang of it, he couldn't control his excitement. After a mere four minutes of practice, he had gone onto combining Lightning and Wind.

"Now Spyro, I understand your excitement, but without practice, it'll be an inconvenience to attempt to use it in a moments need."

"I understand, but I can practice that later, I want to have a lot of choices for now," Spyro waved away Mesilec's urging and continued to fuse Wind and Lightning.

1

Zarss could see Cynder's balcony, and right before he landed, he checked to the rooms surrounding hers to make sure no one was there. There wasn't. As he landed, he placed the tray of food on the table outside and waited. He wanted to know how she felt in the aftermath of her first time using _The Show._ He wasn't sure though he should wait right outside her bedroom, thinking that would be strange to the tenth degree. As he was considering all of this, he felt something start to tug on his consciousness but before he could track it started to fade. And then-

_Crack-Booom!_ Off in the distance, what sounded like a massive explosion rocketed through the city. Before another thought entered his mind, he flew toward the epicenter, Leaving Cynder behind…

1

Cynder felt so comfortable in her bed that she almost didn't want to get up. Cut that, she really didn't want to get up. Had she not smelled food, she most definitively wouldn't have. While the aromas woke her, something else was going to get her up. Just then at the heart of the city…

_Crack-Booom!_ A massive explosion rattled the things in her room, causing her to fall out of bed in alarm. Looking toward her balcony, at first she saw a dragon, which really unnerved her, then after rubbing her eyes it was gone. She ran out the door, ready to fly into the city, but as she got a whiff of the food, her stomach growled and she quickly scarfed it down without a second thought. It wasn't long before she got up in the air and was flying toward the city center. Overhead she could see that the Guardians and Masters had already arrived, standing around quite a large crater, with Zarss hanging around Elder Zantharos. When she finally spotted Spyro in the center of the crater, she decided to land to his right, next to Master Mesilec.

"Spyro, how could you be so irresponsible as to do something like that in the middle of the city!? You woke up half the entire continent with your little stunt!" Master Farlyn barked furiously.

"What did he do?" Cynder and Zarss asked simultaneously.

"I must agree with Farlyn on this one; that was a horrible scene of misconduct, and it should have never happened," Zantharos agreed.

"What. Did. He. Do?" Cynder was started to get a little irritated, and the emotion seemed to be matched by Zarss.

"I'm sorry, but-" poor Spyro was cut off before he could finish his apology. Cynder's emotion caught her, and before she knew it she could feel her energies burst forward. Like her, Zarss had done the same. The combined weight of their powers caused two new crater's to be formed, and this time all eyes were on them.

"**What the blazes did he do!? What could be so bad that you would shut out everything else to reprimand him for it!?**" The Masters gulped and back off, while the three Guardians held their ground, and Zantharos and Mesilec were almost unphased.

"When I was teaching him _Combination_, he fused Lightning with Wind and created Thunder. That is what you heard, and the sound was so powerful it created the crater that was here originally," Mesilec explained, hoping to cool them off, but that failed.

"_**AND!? **_**This city is filled with Dragons; if they can't handle a little noise, then put cotton all over their head and be done with it!**" Zarss and Cynder just seemed to get more pissed.

"It is not as simple as that, now silence!" Master Farlyn got a hold of himself, pushing the fear from his mind. What he didn't expect though was Zarss to yawn after he said this. Spyro looked from Zarss to Cynder then back again. They smiled as the shadows around them started to pick up and swirl. As it started to spin faster, Mesilec rolled his eyes and just flew away. Before anyone could ask a question, just _poof_. The shadows engulfed them and they simply vanished. Unfortunately for The Masters and Guardians, Zantharos had also left, slipping away when Cynder and Zarss had their outburst.

1

Cynder could feel the rush of speed fall off of her as she reached her destination and re-formed. Realizing that she still had her _Aura_ up, she dropped it, and the _whooshing _of air stopped.

"Well, did anyone get a picture of Master Farlyn's face? That was hysterical!" Zarss burst out laughing, obviously amused.

"Yeah, that was a sight to remember!" Spyro almost broke down as well.

"Ooo, they're going to be pissed. I hope that Elder Zantharos can calm the-" Dragons are known for their conversation habit of interruptions, the older ones are no exceptions.

"Do you think that I would really cover your backs after something as ridiculous as that? No, but I will use it to my advantage…," Zantharos burst through the door, almost looking pissed. But Zarss knew him better than most anyone.

"So-you're- going-to-use-this-as-a-way-to-remove-the-levels-of-bureaucracy? I-can-tell-by-the-way-you're-walking-and-you're-smile, you-have-that-look-when-you-have- removed-your-biggest-obstacle-in-a-way-that-can't be-stopped, and yours right now in the politics," Zarss figured out what was going on so fast that it caught everyone by surprise. They were almost completely shocked at this that Spyro's mouth begun to fall open.

"Aaahhh, c'mon, that was easy. He's been thinking about how to get rid of them for months now," Zarss stated simply.

When they realized that he was right they dropped the subject and looked toward Mesilec and Zantharos.

"Sooo, what now?"

1

Cynder ducked to get out of the way of a larger _Whiplash_. Spyro's names for his new Water attacks were different, and they themselves were dangerously powerful. With these under his belt, in such a short time he had grown more than twice the strength then before. In his fight with Zarss, he had nearly beaten him into submission before Zarss gave in. Knowing how good of a fighter Zarss was, it became hard for Cynder to believe that she would last longer.

She had. She had started out almost completely outmatched and now they were dead even. The battle had gone on for half an hour before he landed a hit on her, and it wasn't long before they were even again. They went back and forth between each other, attacking with either breath attacks or coming claw to claw and tail to tail. It was Zarss who finally realized the conflict would never end.

"K-k, we've seen enough, can't we get cleaned off and call it a day? You two are obviously equals, and that means we won't be leaving anytime soon if we sit to watch the whole thing," Zarss complained, and they could see that he was going to start to get fussy.

"Fine, we'll-" Cynder tried one more time to get up one, but Spyro thought ahead and danced back a few steps, getting out of the dragoness's reach.

"-stop for now, but tomorrow it's me and you, Spyro," Cynder finished, looking quite smug. She had had a hard time controlling her emotions since the little incident. A cool bath was what she really needed.

"Come on, the Pools are this way," Zarss walked into the Tower, knowing they would follow. When they looked back at Mesilec and Zantharos, they looked like they were deep in conversation, so they turned into the house with conversation on their mind as well.

1

"So how does it feel to use a Complex Element?' Cynder almost thought of asking several other questions as well, but refrained herself.

"It's not as different as using other Basic Elements, but the feeling is incredibly strange. Especially the first time. That first time is so weird, it's like you're merging to different parts of yourself. And the rush of power that follows, ugh it's simply amazing," Spyro shivered as the memory went through his head again.

"Well then, I guess you're going to have to show me one of these days," Cynder remarked almost seductively, as she walked past Spyro, allowing her tail to slide against his chin. But before he could follow she walked into the nearest Pool room and closed the door, leaving Spyro confused and his hearted pounding.

"Not this time, _meus amicus_, no fooling around while I'm close by," Zarss laid down the law just as Spyro went to open the door.

"I wasn't going, wait, what the heck does that mean?" Spyro caught himself, sure to make it so he didn't sound like a fool.

"It means _My Friend_. It's an extremely old language, but it's was still in use before the dragons went to war against Malefor. They haven't spoken about it?" Zarss asked as they walked to the next Pool room

"No, they haven't." Spyro started to wonder what else they weren't teaching him.

1

Spyro had been wondering around the corridors and stairs of the Tower for quite a while. He was starting to wonder if this night visit to the Library was necessary now, but it was by far too late to turn back, he was already lost. As he passed a window he noticed something absolutely stunning. Out past the window there was a beautiful meadow, filled with patches of flowers, bleached of their colors in the moon light. And in that meadow there was a single tree, and under that tree lay a dragoness. Cynder was under the tree, and while he was unable to make out the words, he knew she was singing. Her voice light on the cool night breeze, as a butterfly on the summer wind. Unable to catch himself, he leapt out of the window and silently glided toward her, hoping to hear more of the melody.

"_Ooohhh my sweet baby,_

_It's alright in the meadow,_

_For all my sweet sorrow_

_Has been left behind._

_For now my sweet baby,_

_We part ways,_

_But soon my child,_

_I shall sing to you again."_

The song captivated him, and as he was landing, he felt a single tear roll down his cheek. He brushed it away with the back of his paw, and softly walked up to her.

"Wow, Cynder that was beautiful. Where did you learn to sing like that?" Spyro asked, very careful not to scare her.

"In truth, I never did. I heard the song in one of my dreams, and I remembered it. Every time I hear it in my head it feels more like a memory than a dream," Cynder explained, very thoughtfully. Then she continued,

"Did you know that I was the last egg to be added to the temple before it was attacked? I was the oldest before being separated from my parents. And when I hear it, it's muffled, like I was listening through something. I think, I think that my mother sang it to me before she gave me up, before all of this happened," Cynder motioned with her wing to everything around them.

"Do you wish that this hadn't happened?" Spyro asked curiously.

"Sometimes, yes."

"But don't you realize that if this never happened then we wouldn't be here together? We probably would've never met. I could have ended up with someone else," Spyro remarked as he sat down next to her, hoping she realized his deeper meaning.

"So what are you saying?" Cynder asked, coaxing the words she wanted to hear out of him.

"I mean-" and just as he was going to say them, his voice got stuck in his throat and he started to trip over himself. He slowed down and forced words to come out of his mouth.

"I mean I wouldn't have wanted it come out any other way," He finally got out, hoping that it got through to her. And even though it did, she felt disappointed, and decided to wait a little longer.

"Me too, Spyro. Me too."

She laid back down, the soft grass acting like a bed. Five minutes passed. Then another ten. It wasn't for twenty-five minutes that one of them spoke, and it was her.

"Well, it was nice spending this time with you, but I think it's time for some sleep," she yawned as she got up and stretched.

"Yeah, I guess so," Spyro got up as well, and before he could say anything else, she jumped into the air and took off.

1

While she was looking forward to going to sleep, the real reason Cynder had gotten up was because she had seen Zarss fly off into the distance. Most wouldn't have been able to see him, but her eyes were instantly able to pick him out of the sky. He had flown low, and toward the trees. Once she saw him she landed close, hoping to figure out what was going on. In the depths of the trees there was a clearing and there he stood. But something was different, something was wrong.

"Zarss?" Cynder almost whispered. He turned his head, and then she noticed it. His eyes had become green, instead of their usual onyx. This gave her a fright, but then he spoke. And when he spoke, it was more like the wind howling then the voice of a young dragon.

"_Die vita,_

_mors erit pretium desperatione victum._

_Et discipulo magistrum unum,_

_et bello finis interitus,_

_donec proditio illuminatur._

_Lumen unum hoc proelium eduxit irca finem perducat rex."_

And with that, Zarss fell to the ground, completely unconscious.


	7. Chapter VI: More Secrets

**Unfortunately this chapter is a little short. The next one will be longer, I promise. Also,I am releasing the beginnings of my new fanfiction story, it won't be Spyro, though. It will be a Naruto story. If you like Star Wars, a fanfic will come out for that as well.**

* * *

Chapter VI:

More Secrets Revealed

Zarss could feel the stirring in the halls and streets of the city. His vision last night had forced the Masters and Guardians to give up their political power, reinstating the old ways of the dragon council. With Elder Zantharos named Grand High Elder and Master Mesilec named his second, Zarss had begun to see it unfold. And the last piece, soon to be placed. His goal was soon to be reached.

1

Cynder felt a shiver run through her spine as she was forced to remember what had happened.

"Me and Spyro had been talking at the old meadow, when I saw Zarss flying toward the forest. When Spyro and I were done, I followed him. When I found him through the trees, area seemed to fade as he turned and spoke to me. He said something in a different language. When I interrupted him, He released his energy and spoke again, this time different again. It sounded like _another_ language, different from even the first. Then something happened to him, something that I can't explain. He changed, something about him flickered, making his energy feel cold, then, he fainted," Cynder finished her report to the new council.

"Cynder, do you think that you could identify the change if you saw it?" Zantharos asked, determined to prove or disprove his hypothesis.

"Maybe, I don't know. It happened so quick…" She wavered as she spoke, braking off at the end. At this Zantharos nodded to one of the cheetahs that sat next to his pedestal, and at once the cheetahs brought before her a drawing. When she looked at it she saw the silhouette of a dragon, almost featureless, except for the eyes. Its eyes gleamed in the darkness that had swallowed the rest of it. The eyes were like none she had ever seen before, or heard of. They were emerald green, just like hers, but they had markings in them. Three small black dots lay both above and below the pupil, totaling six for each eye. Then there were the markings on each the left and right side. They looking a lot like two similarity signs put together, one upside down to make something of a two dimensional double helix. The eyes, though, hid something behind them, as even the picture made her shiver. She couldn't look at them too long, as just the mere sight sent her mind reeling, made her feel as if she was falling into madness. She looked away and nodded.

"Yes, that's it. Those eyes… he had the same eyes."

"I am sorry that I forced you to see that, but I needed to know. Those are the Aneirigan. They are a power not seen for millennia, and are the most powerful ability known to Dragon, Mole, Ape, Cheetah, or anything else that walks this world. It is said that they once were the power of a supreme being, the being who made the gods and the world, one who held the universe in the palm of his hand, and if he wanted to, see its demise in the blink of an eye. Up until 3000 years ago there lived an ancient that could activate the ocular power, but after they started a war with the cheetahs, they vanished. Taking all the knowledge they had of the power with them. It isn't supposed to be in the hands of dragons," Zantharos finished his background story of the Ocular Power.

"What makes this ability so powerful?" Spyro questioned, irritated with this new information. Seeing his obvious frustration, Farlyn growled, and just as he was about to snap, Zantharos lifted his wing to quiet him.

"The power doesn't take energy from the person's own reserves, but instead takes any and all energy from its surrounding, allowing the user to do absolutely anything. They could in essence become greater than a god. They could become the universe. Manipulating time and space at will, take things out of existence, create things out of thin air. These are just a few of the things that are possible with the Aneirigan. And while it takes time to gain full control of its abilities, in the end, they are limitless. Not only that, the Aneirigan has **no **weaknesses. Those who use it can become invincible."

"So are you telling me that Zarss is now the most powerful being alive!?" Spyro shouted.

"No, not if he can't use the eyes at will. If he can, then yes. If you wish to find out, then you will have to wait, for only time has the answers. But right now we have other matters to attend to.


End file.
